Artists are the voices of their generations. For Islam, is that a good thing?

 Eastern and Western cultures are different. There is no question about that. Over the last five years I have attempted to understand the enmity that Muslim fundamentalists feel towards us. Is it a clash of cultures? Is it our foreign policy? Is it strictly religious; the Judean-Christian West VS. the Islamic East? Well, I'm not sure. I have written three distinct articles during the month I have been a member of gather, each attempting to explain the war on terror (sorry guys, I am sticking with my notion this is a war). The first article was about a clash of civilizations, the second about our foreign policy, and the third on religion. Sorry, but I am not done. I presently finished an article by John C. Zimmerrman, a professor at University of Nevada, Las Vegas that highlighted certain intellectuals who have shaped the Islamic mindset regarding western culture.

Five years ago I read a short story called La Factda(sp?) and it has stuck with me ever since.  In it, the author theorizes that artists (writers, musicians, etc) serve as the voice for a particular population. For example, Victor Hugo served as a voice for the struggling and neglected French middle class. I believe that Muslims feel that they have been wronged. Whether it is present day Palestine, conquering invaders over the last few centuries, an imperialistic western society hell bent on forcing their sex drugs and rock and roll on them, or whomever else, they feel neglected and they are angry. Starting in 1928 with the founding of the Muslim Brotherhood, they found their voice. Hasan al- Banna was upset about what he perceived to be a moral breakdown in Egyptian culture after World War One. (If you remember your history, the British compelled the Arabs to revolt as to weaken the Ottoman Turks). A society ruled by Sharia was not to follow; only several newly formed independent states ruled by dictators, monarchs, and western influenced democracies. Industrialization took hold and religion was tossed aside. "Separation of church and state" became obsolete in that area of the world.

Banna spoke violently and passionately about how western values corroded historic Islamic institutions and the modern extremist movement was born. "Western innovation, technical know-how and economic progress were not able to give the human soul a ray of light, a hint of (spiritual) inspiration or a strand of faith" These words are important, because I think it speaks to the nucleus of the present problem. The Islamic extremists value faith, religion, spirituality, and closeness to GD. They abhor western values because they believe value money, materialism, and have a blatant disregard to religion. I personally don't feel this to be the case, but to play devils advocate, we do have an awful amount of depression in America and throughout the western world. Could this be a result of disconnect from spirituality, an estrangement from GD? Are we rich in resources but poor in love and interpersonal relationships?

Zimmerman proceeds to discuss other intellectuals. He mentions Sayyid Qutb, who predicted the decline of western civilization; do to their doctrine of separation of church and state. Qutb also advocated a worldwide Jihad against all Islamic governments (Bin Laden has very similar views). Sayyid did not, however, think that an Islamic society was possible until much later. But, "living in accordance with GDs will" was more important then the materialism of the west.  After Qutb, and most importantly to Americans, comes Ayatollah Khomeini. Khomeini, in my opinion, is the one who gave teeth to the proceeding Islamist thinkers.

Even though Shi'ites have been practicing a form of separation of church and state for centuries, the unpopularity of the Shah made many reconsider. In 1979, after a serious of demonstrations, the Shah was forced into exile and Khomeini took over. What followed was an organized attack on western values, including a vicious takeover of the US embassy, and a regime that fully supported international terrorism. The world, in fact, has never been the same.

Over the next twenty-years people like Osama Bin Laden, Abu Musab Al Zaqawi, and other religious zealots have continued the tradition started long ago. The battle is still raging in battlefield, through the media, and in academia. John Locke, John Stuart Mills, Plato, Hobbes, and others are known to influence our founding fathers and subsequently our democratic institutions. I feel that Hasan al- Banna, Sayyid Qutb, Ayatollah Khomeini, might have sparked an ideological storm that will be slow to temper. For not everyone is literate, informed, or knowledgeable. Many people get their information from articulate and forceful individuals, and then those people react. Their reactions, sometimes, set forth motions that move mountains and cross oceans.